Finnish possessive suffixes: -ni, -si, -nsa, -mme, -nne
In English you say 'my book'. In Finnish you usually add a small ending to the word itself: kirjani. Here is how these endings work, with and without the pronoun, and with cases.
5 min read · Updated 10 October 2026
The six endings
Finnish shows who owns something with an ending on the noun, called a possessive suffix. There is one for each person. In standard written Finnish you usually also keep the possessive pronoun before the noun, at least in the third person.
| Person | Suffix | Full form | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| minun | -ni | minun kirjani | my book |
| sinun | -si | sinun kirjasi | your book |
| hänen | -nsa / -nsä | hänen kirjansa | his/her book |
| meidän | -mme | meidän kirjamme | our book |
| teidän | -nne | teidän kirjanne | your (pl.) book |
| heidän | -nsa / -nsä | heidän kirjansa | their book |
Only the third-person ending has two forms. It follows vowel harmony: -nsa in back-vowel words (kirjansa), -nsä in front-vowel words (äitinsä, his/her mother).
With or without the pronoun?
In the first and second person, the pronoun is optional. The ending already says whose it is, so written Finnish often leaves the pronoun out. Use it when you want to stress the owner.
Tämä on kirjani.
This is my book.
Tämä on minun kirjani.
This is my book. (mine, not someone else's)
Mikä sinun nimesi on?
What is your name?
Nimeni on Anna.
My name is Anna.
In the third person, the pronoun matters. With hänen or heidän, the thing belongs to someone else. Without a pronoun, it belongs to the subject of the sentence.
Matti pesi autonsa.
Matti washed his (own) car.
Matti pesi hänen autonsa.
Matti washed his/her car. (someone else's)
How the suffix attaches
The suffix goes on the vowel stem of the word, the same stem you see in the genitive. A final -n (genitive) or -t (plural) disappears before the suffix.
| Basic word | Genitive | My … |
|---|---|---|
| kirja (book) | kirjan | kirjani |
| perhe (family) | perheen | perheeni |
| nimi (name) | nimen | nimeni |
| nainen (woman) | naisen | naiseni |
| puhelin (phone) | puhelimen | puhelimeni |
| kysymys (question) | kysymyksen | kysymykseni |
Because the -n and -t disappear, kirjani can mean 'my book', 'my books' or 'of my book'. The sentence usually makes it clear: Kirjani ovat pöydällä (My books are on the table).
Words with consonant gradation usually take the strong grade before the suffix, even where the genitive is weak: kauppa → kaupan → kauppani, pöytä → pöydän → pöytäni, äiti → äidin → äitini.
Possessive suffixes with cases
The suffix comes after the case ending. Most case endings stay as they are: talossa (in the house) becomes talossani (in my house). A few lose their final consonant: the illative -n (taloon → talooni, into my house) and the translative -ksi, which becomes -kse- (ystäväksi → ystäväkseni, as my friend).
| Nominative | Inessive (in) | Illative (into) | Partitive | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| my | taloni | talossani | talooni | taloani |
| your | talosi | talossasi | taloosi | taloasi |
| his/her | talonsa | talossaan | taloonsa | taloaan |
| our | talomme | talossamme | taloomme | taloamme |
| your (pl.) | talonne | talossanne | taloonne | taloanne |
| their | talonsa | talossaan | taloonsa | taloaan |
The third person: -nsa or a long vowel + n
After a case ending that ends in a single short vowel, the third person usually becomes a long vowel + n instead of -nsa: talossaan (in his/her house), äidilleen (to his/her mother), kotonaan (at his/her home). Forms like talossansa also exist, but they sound old-fashioned or poetic.
Asun vanhempieni luona.
I live at my parents' place.
Hän soitti äidilleen.
He/she called his/her mother.
Unohdin puhelimeni kotiin.
I forgot my phone at home.
Pidän työstäni.
I like my job.
Talossamme on kolme huonetta.
There are three rooms in our house.
Ystäväni asuu Oulussa.
My friend lives in Oulu.
Possessive suffixes on other words
The suffixes also go on postpositions and on itse (self). This is very common in written Finnish:
Tule minun kanssani!
Come with me!
Hän istui vieressäni.
He/she sat next to me.
Minun mielestäni se on hyvä idea.
In my opinion it's a good idea.
Tule meidän luoksemme!
Come over to our place!
Hän katsoi itseään peilistä.
He/she looked at himself/herself in the mirror.
Spoken Finnish: the suffixes often disappear
In everyday speech, especially around Helsinki, people usually drop the suffix and use a short spoken pronoun instead. You will hear mun kirja instead of minun kirjani, and sun puhelin instead of sinun puhelimesi.
| Written | Common spoken form | English |
|---|---|---|
| minun kirjani | mun kirja | my book |
| sinun kotisi | sun koti | your home |
| minun mielestäni | mun mielestä | in my opinion |
| minun kanssani | mun kanssa | with me |
| meidän talomme | meidän talo | our house |
Some suffixes do stay in speech, especially in fixed expressions and with the third person: Se soitti äidilleen is perfectly normal spoken Finnish. Usage also varies by region and by speaker. For more, see our guide to spoken Finnish.
Learn to recognise all the forms, but don't stress about producing perfect suffixes in conversation. Start with -ni and -si on common words like nimeni, kotini and perheeni, and the rest will follow.
Practise with Maija
Possessive suffixes come up constantly when you talk about yourself: your family, your work, your home. Maija is an AI Finnish tutor who talks with you out loud, notices when an ending slips, and explains it in your own language if you want. She also tells pronunciation slips apart from real grammar mistakes, so you only get corrected where it matters. Take the free level check to begin.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'my' in Finnish?+
Add -ni to the word, usually with 'minun' in front: 'minun kirjani' or just 'kirjani' (my book). In spoken Finnish people often say 'mun kirja'.
Do I need both 'minun' and '-ni'?+
In written Finnish the suffix is expected, and 'minun' is optional. In the third person, 'hänen' changes the meaning: 'autonsa' is the subject's own car, 'hänen autonsa' is someone else's.
Why is it 'talossaan' and not 'talossansa'?+
After a case ending that ends in a short vowel, the third-person suffix is usually a long vowel + n: talossaan, äidilleen. 'Talossansa' exists but sounds old-fashioned.
Do Finns use possessive suffixes when they speak?+
Less than in writing. In casual speech people often say 'mun koti' instead of 'minun kotini', but many suffixes survive in fixed phrases and in the third person.